I can’t stop the laugh as Noah mutters “Asshole” and trudges up the stairs behind me.
Chapter Sixteen
Noah
I follow my nose to the kitchen and stop short at Jet bouncing around. The kid reminds me of a hyperactive poodle. But in a good way.
“Where’s Matt?” I ask.
“Where do you think?”
Ah, right. “Basement for his morning workout.” I’m usually not awake for it, but the smell of food roused me from sleep.
“Yep. Breakfast will be ready in ten if you want to go get him.”
“You can cook?”
“No. I’m just makin’ a mess in here for funsies.”
I shouldn’t laugh, but I do.
“After Matt left, Charlene was the one who cooked for us. Then she left, but at least she was still close by and I could ask her for pointers.”
The way he says that type of shit so casually—as if it’s normal for the eldest at home to parent the younger kids—pisses me off. “Another dumb question here. Why don’t your parents cook?”
Jet shrugs and goes back to preparing what smells like bacon and something sweet. “They’re never home. And the kids are old enough now to fend for themselves. They’re not missing my cooking.”
“It smells good.”
“Don’t get too excited. It’s plain ol’ bacon and egg crêpes with maple syrup. Hope you’re not a vegetarian.”
“I can handle a lot of meat in my mouth.”
Jet laughs.
“Totally didn’t mean that to sound as dirty as it did. This sure beats the breakfast of champions we’ve been having.” Blowjob with a side of coffee.
“From the takeout menus I’ve seen, breakfast isn’t the only thing you’ve been lazy with.”
“It’s New York. You can pretty much get whatever you want delivered, but Matt’s is always the same.”
Jet smiles at me and together we say, “Steamed brown rice and chicken.”
“God, I remember when he used to feed us that crap at home when he was in training.” Jet shudders. The reminder that Matt has stayed in training mode this whole time reminds me he’s nowhere near ready to give up on football.
The dreaded realization that Matt is going to leave me makes the walls around my heart begin to close up. They’ve crumbled these last few weeks, but I can’t let them fall completely. I don’t know if I could survive it.
“He’s going to accept the Chicago offer, isn’t he?” My voice comes out as a low murmur.
“Matt is football. Always has been. If it’s his only chance to play, he’ll do it.” Jet eyes me over his shoulder. “You gonna move to Chicago with him if he goes?”
My heart thuds in my chest, and I don’t know how much to tell Jet of the arrangement between Matt and me. “Nah. We both know we’re temporary. He’s …” Too good for me. Despite my father’s opinions of it being the other way around, it’s true; Matt is too good for me. My father sees our money as a status. I see it as a curse—a reason to stay guarded so I don’t end up blindsided again. I can’t let myself get in too deep, because Matt’s leaving. If it’s not Chicago, it’ll be another town.
“He’s what?” Matt asks from behind me.
“He’s a nosy fuck,” I say and fake a smile as I turn to face him.
He doesn’t smile back. He’s covered in sweat, he’s shirtless, and damn, sweats were a bad idea to dress in this morning. Can’t hide anything in these pants.
“Tell me what you were going to say,” Matt says.
I tell myself to spit out an ugly truth. “You’ve got football to focus on, and we said from the start this wasn’t going anywhere.” I glance back at Jet who’s pretending he’s not listening.
“Right. Okay.” Matt still breathes heavy from his workout. “I’m gonna go shower.”
When I drag my eyes off Matt’s retreating ass, they meet Jet’s scowl.
“Brutal, man,” he says.
“Nah, Matt can handle it. He knew the deal going in.”
Jet scoffs. “Never thought I’d see the day I was smarter than my big brother.”
“Stay out of shit you don’t understand, junior.”
Now I’m entertaining to him. Great.
We have a deal. Neither of us are going to break it.
“I’m not going to piss off the guy who’s giving me a free bed, so this is me not telling you that if you break Matt’s heart—”
“What? You’ll break my face? You’re half my size, squirt.”
“I was gonna say if you break his heart, you’re an idiot because you ain’t gonna find better than my brother. He practically raised me. So, if you hurt him, you’re a fuckin’ dick.”
I can’t help laughing. “I’m glad you held back.”
“That’s funny to you?”
“Yeah, it is.” Because I think I’m losing my head. Matt’s getting under my skin, and I’m not sure I like it. My usual reaction to being called a dick is along the lines of duh. But when it comes to Matt, the last thing I want to do is hurt him. He’s been through enough.